NEW CHAIRMAN FOR CMA
The Countryside Management Association Board is delighted to announce that following the recent election process, Acting Chair Linda Nunn is to serve as the Association’s Chairman for the next 2 years.
Linda has already undertaken a vast amount of work on behalf of the Association and the Board is delighted to now welcome her officially as Chairman.
Linda is delighted to be taking on the role, on hearing the news, she said “I will work very hard over the coming months to ensure CMA continues to grow from strength to strength. The Board and National Committee are already working on several new things intended to make life easier and smoother for members. I’ll also be looking at some ideas for improving member benefits. A big thank you to all the members who have supported me to date, it is much appreciated, and I look forward to working with all those involved with the CMA as we move forward.”
The CMA Board
Linda Nunn - Chairman
Linda Nunn
Day job: Director, Cranborne Chase AONB
Background: Since 1980, Linda has had various countryside ranger roles in Warrington, Lancashire, Merseyside and Dorset until taking on the challenge of leading the Cranborne Chase AONB team from 2000. Since 2005, Linda has run a charity supporting the rangers in Virunga NP, DR Congo. She joined CMA in 1981 and became a Board member in 2014.
Dave Solly - Membership Affairs Group chair
Day job: With Natural England advising on the natural environment, particularly in green spaces/places close to where people live.
Background: Dave has been involved in countryside and greenspace management since 1988 and an active a CMA member since 1992. He’s had various roles in CMA over the years including Midlands region Chair and newsletter editor, conference organiser and Treasurer. He currently has oversight of the Membership categories and processes for accredited membership.
Sarah Gibbs - E. Midlands region co-ordinator
Sarah Gibbs
Day job: Senior Reserves Officer at Pitsford Water for Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire
Background: I have been working in conservation and a member of the CMA since 2002 and I have been actively involved with helping to make things happen within the organisation. Originally I started at a county level as a rep for Gloucestershire and later joined the committee to help at a national level. I have held the position of editing and designing Ranger magazine since 2013
Alan Preece - Treasurer, West Midlands region co-ordinator
Alan Preece
Day Job: Senior Warden, Saltwells Nature Reserve, Dudley MBC
Background: Alan has been in the countryside management sector since finishing his BSc in Environmental Science in 1998. He then spent a year volunteering at Baggeridge Country Park in South Staffordshire before going on to study for his MSc in Habitat Creation and Management. Following this he worked for a year’s with A Rocha in Portugal carrying out sustainable fisheries research and helping to run their field study centre.
He joined Warwickshire Wildlife Trust’s reserves team in 2001 where he led on volunteer recruitment and management. He then moved to London Borough of Hillingdon looking after their country parks and many of their nature reserves.
From there Alan took on the role of borough ecologist in Dudley Council’s planning policy team where he led on nature conservation policy and planning application advice. After six years he hopped back over the field gate to manage Saltwells Nature Reserve.
He has been fortunate to work on ecological research in Portugal, France and Lebanon as well as the UK. However his main interest is getting people from all backgrounds to actively improve their natural environment.”
Steve Scoffin - Secretary
Steve Scoffin
Day job – Lecturer in Countryside and Environment at Askham Bryan College’s Tees Valley Centres
Background – Apart from lecturing at 4 Land-Based Colleges, Steve has run a number of Country Parks and Nature Reserves in County Durham, Stockton on Tees and Cornwall, and was the Executive Director of the Great North Forest before combining managing the GNF with the other Community Forest in the North East, the Tees Forest.
Steve has been involved in funding applications for both Northumberland Wildlife Trust and Dartmoor National Park Authority, with successful bids to the Heritage Lottery Fund for the ‘Rescued from the Sea’ community archaeology project at Druridge Bay on the Northumberland coast and for Dartmoor’s Moor than meets the eye Landscape Partnership Scheme.
He also works as a consultant and guided walks leader, having been a member of Dartmoor’s Moorland Guides until recently, and despite leaving the South West, still continues as an Accredited Assessor for the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award for the Dartmoor Assessor Network, as well as with the North York Moors Network.
He was a Secretary of State appointed Member of the North York Moors National Park Authority for 6 years until 2012, while also being Chair of the Northumberland Coast and Lowlands LEADER Local Action Group and a Trustee and company Secretary of Durham Wildlife Trust.
Steve has been a CMA member since joining the then Association of National Park and Countryside Wardens in 1978, and joined the Board in 2015.
Mark Baker - Vice Chair, website admin
Mark Baker
Day job: Country Park Manager, Devon County Council
Background: Having held a variety of countryside management roles in Oxfordshire, Derbyshire and abroad, Mark has been the manager of the Grand Western Canal Country Park & LNR in Devon since 2003. He has been a CMA member since 2001 and a board member since 2014.
The National Committee
Ian Brooker - International Ranger Advisor
Ian Brooker
Day job: Ranger – Dartmoor National Park
Background: Ian has worked for both private and local authority countryside services since 1983 and has been a member of the CMA since 1984. He has worked for Dartmoor National Park Authority since 1990. He has a good knowledge of Ranger Services throughout the World and has attended several European and World Ranger Congresses. He also spent nine months in Newfoundland, Canada in 2000/2001 on a Ranger exchange programme.
Howard Sutcliffe - Welsh region co-ordinator
Howard Sutcliffe
Day job: AONB Officer
Background: I have always enjoyed the countryside and coast, being born in Blackpool Lancashire and I enjoyed growing up with the hustle and bustle of family shops on the golden mile. Time off was often spent in the Lake District or Bleasdale and the Trough in the Forest of Bowland.
Entered in to Countryside Management over 30 years ago, my first two summers were spent as a Seasonal Ranger in the Lake District National Park.
I then moved to Cheshire County Council as a Countryside Ranger managing various sites around Delamere. Finally I moved to North East Wales where I manage Denbighshire County Council’s Warden Service and Countryside Properties.
I am also lucky enough to be the Clwydian Range and Dee Valley Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) Officer which covers 390 square kilometres of rural Denbighshire, Flintshire and Wrexham. The stunning landscape consists of windswept moorlands, craggy limestone outcrops, the meandering River Dee and the popular tourist destination Llangollen.
Tom Heenan - East of England region co-ordinator
Tom Heenan
Day job: Ranger, Essex County Council
Background: After studying a degree in Zoology with Conservation, Tom started out as a Volunteer Ranger at Kelburn Castle & Estate in Scotland. He then returned to the East of England and volunteered at Epping Forest Field Centre, and worked as a voluntary Warden with TCV Urban Ecology in Greenwich, London. He gained a paid position as Assistant Ranger with Essex Wildlife Trust in 2012, then a full-time Ranger position in 2014 with Thurrock Council. He currently works as a Ranger in the Essex Country Parks team.
Tom joined the CMA in 2010, and has been active on the East of England committee since 2014.
Kevin Vigars - North East England region co-ordinator
Kevin Vigars
Day job: Lead Adviser (Statutory Access – Coastal Access, Open Access and National Trails) at Natural England
Background: Having held a variety of countryside and access management roles across the UK I have been involved in Open and Coastal Access Management at Natural England since 2008. I have been a CMA member since 1999 and a board member since 2005.
Ted Talbot – National Trust Corporate Representative
Ted Talbot
Day job: Countryside Manager for the National Trust in the Peak District
Background: Ted is passionate about the rangering profession and hopes to inspire all rangers to see the value of joining a professional organization. He has over 25 years’ experience as both a Ranger and Countryside Manager and worked on the internationally renowned Ranger training courses run from the Peak District National Park’s training centre at Losehill Hall for over ten years until its closure in 2010. During this time his main experience was with local authority countryside services in Barnsley & Sheffield where he managed the Woodlands Section as well as the Ranger Service until moving to the National Trust in 2014. Ted has been lucky enough to deliver Ranger training events all over the UK and also, through interpreters in both Austria and Slovakia. As one of the Midlands Region National Trust “Ranger Champions” he is looking forward to welcoming more National Trust Rangers into the CMA.
Tim Russell - South West England region co-ordinator
Tim Russell
Day job: Urban Ranger, Devon Wildlife Trust / Plymouth City Council
Background: Environmental Biology degree at Oxford Brookes University. Nature Reserve Officer at Slapton Ley NNR in South Devon, Countryside Manager for Oxford City Council, Senior Ranger Quantock Hills AONB Somerset, Ranger in Charge Australian National Parks Service Victoria (career exchange), Site Manager for Woodland Trust for Avon, Somerset, West Dorset & East Devon.
Full member of CMA since 1986, previous SW regional positions held include: County Rep for Somerset, Treasurer and Secretary. Received Landscapes for Life Award 2015 – for contribution to conservation and enhancement of AONBs.
Richard Westwood - South East England & London region co-ordinator
Richard has recently taken on this role following Jess Darwin’s departure to take up a position outside this region. His pen portrait will be added shortly….
Toby Edwards - Northern Ireland region co-ordinator
Toby Edwards
Day Job: Ranger for National Trust at Mount Stewart Demesne, Northern Ireland – Covering restoration & development for conservation & access across the recently acquired estate.
Background: Originally from NW Somerset growing up sandwiched between, Exmoor, Blackdowns and Quantocks I left for North Wales to complete my degree in Leisure & the Environment specialising in wilderness, heritage and sustainable development. I ended up in the area for 6 years, working & exploring and bouncing back to the South-West for seasonal work. I began volunteering for National Trust on Anglesey and in North Devon 2004-6 and then took up a residential Volunteer Warden post based at NT Lanhydrock, Cornwall.
In 2007 I moved to Northern Ireland to take up Ranger post with the NT on the North Coast. This developed into a Lead role focusing on the restoration & re-development of the Downhill Demesne estate. 2012 saw me make the unusual jump from countryside to visitor services in the Site/Operations manager role covering Portstewart Strand, Downhill Demesne, Hezlett House and some 2000+acres of highly designated costal and estuarine lands with over 300K visitors pa. Fed-up with being office bound in that role I got back out on the ground in 2015 taking up my current role in the newly acquired 1000acre demesne surrounding Mount Stewart on the Ards Peninsula
Clair Payne - North West England region co-ordinator
Clair Payne
Day Job: Ranger with the National Trust, Hawkshead and Claife, Lake District
Background: I’ve been a National Trust ranger since 2012, helping look after the west shore of Windermere, Claife Heights, the grounds of Wray Castle and much more. My day to day role involves a variety of nature conservation projects, improving access to our countryside sites and inspiring our volunteers. I spent nearly 2 years as a Volunteer Officer with BTCV learning to run a variety of practical projects. I also spent six months leading trail teams in Iceland – and now help train future ICV leaders. This led on to me becoming an Assistant Ranger working with volunteer groups at the National Trusts’ High Wray Basecamp in 2012, before becoming a Ranger in 2013 covering this varied and exciting part of the Lake District.
I joined the CMA in 2016. I’m excited to spread the word of the CMA around the North West and meet other countryside professionals.
Chris Wood - Yorkshire and Humber region co-ordinator
Chris Wood
Day Job: Ranger with the National Trust in the North York Moors
Background: Chris has worked for the National Trust since 2011, first as an Academy Ranger based with their North York Moors, Yorkshire coast and Durham countryside team and then as a Ranger working on the Lanhydrock estate in Cornwall. During his time at Lanhydrock he was involved in the multi-million pound Cycle Hub development, which saw 10k of off road cycle trails and brand new visitor hub created.
In 2015 Chris returned to the North York Moors where he currently manages countryside sites including Roseberry Topping, Bransdale and Bridestones.
He joined the CMA in 2016 after discovering its relevance and importance during his experience at the World Ranger Congress in Colorado, USA. He hopes to promote the CMA in Yorkshire and looks forward to working with other countryside professionals in the region.